Tick followed tock followed tick followed.....

The road to Milngavie starts a long long way before 22nd June...and I wonder if this is a key part of the psychological journey we must take to succeed in our ultimate goal of crashing through the leisure centre doors, whether that is 15 or 35 hours after (for those of us lucky enough) the start.

For me there have been month's of journey already....I'm not sure when, over the course of many years of involvement with the race, and my progression to ultra distance my thinking changed from 'never' into 'maybe' into 'I REALLY want to (and CAN) do this!', but here I am 16 days after submitting my entry, anxiously counting off the days until a higher power makes that ultimate decision for me!  

It was a mental challenge waiting for 1st November when the entries opened, having made the decision and completed the 'required' entry criteria (often surprising myself with performances along the way)...there was no need to enter on day 1, but the temptation was almost strong enough to stay up til 00:01 to get in their early! (I didn't!).

And now we wait...all 218 who have entered so far...when that number gets past 265 we know there's a ballot, and some will be disappointed, and others elated, excited and scared in varying measures (OMG I hope I'm in this latter group!)

Meanwhile, we train, we go about our 'normal' lives, and we wonder...

Some of us will already be securing hotel rooms for the start/finish, asking for time off work, and lining up support crews...while we start to think schedules, diets, cross-training and other races (the start of December could be a double disappointment - Glenmore 24 entries open and will likely sell out at record speed!)

So we wait, we grow mentally stronger, knowing this will help us get through the 7 months from acceptance to race day to finish.

Waiting...with our fingers and toes crossed....